The Permian added 21,000 barrels of production a day between March and April, bringing the Permian’s overall oil production up to 1.982 million barrels a day, according the EIA.

Other major oil-producing regions have seen production begin to drop. The Bakken shale in North Dakota saw production fall by 8,000 barrels a day to 1.32 million, while the Eagle Ford in south Texas dropped 10,000 barrels a day to 1.723 million. The Niobrara region, which stretches across Colorado and Wyoming, fell by 5,000 barrels a day to 413,000 barrels, according to the EIA.

Oil production increases in the Permian is down from a peak of 46,000 new barrels a day in December, and despite a sharp drop in the number of drilling rigs the region has responded with continued growth. The EIA figures show that the Permian has more than doubled oil production since 2010, and a similar increase has happened in the Niobrara region. The Bakken shale has increased production five-fold -- almost 1 million barrels a day since 2010, while the Eagle Ford rose from tens of thousands of barrels to 1.7 million a day in the same period.

This tremendous growth is being tempered by a significant drop in oil prices since late November. Rig counts have plummeted as a glut of oil on the international market has made exploration and production companies slash budgets, according to previous Reporter-Telegram articles.

The EIA data also shows that production in the Permian from so-called “legacy” -- or existing -- oil wells has steadily dropped: from 10,000 fewer barrels a day in 2007 to 70,000 fewer barrels a day in 2015. Similar trends can be seen in the Bakken and the Eagle Ford. This falling production from legacy wells is cutting deep into production from new wells. While between March and April an additional 90,000 barrels of oil a day were produced from new wells in the Permian, legacy wells lost 69,000 barrels a day.